What did the initiative and referendum expand? who did they ?

The initiative and referendum were part of a reform program widely discussed across the nation. “Direct Democracy” was sometimes seen as a panacea for all the ills which troubled reformers. They trusted “the people” to set the nation on its rightful course when they had given up on what they saw as hopelessly corrupt state legislatures. South Dakota was the first state to adopt direct legislation, followed by Oregon in 1902.